Kansas-Nebraska Act

The Kansas-Nebraska Act was a law passed by the US government under President Franklin Pierce in 1854 that allowed for the states of Nebraska and Kansas to decide if they wanted to allow slavery through popular sovereignty. The act led to outside influences attempting to influence the slavery debate, leading to clashes between Free Staters and Border Ruffians in the "Bleeding Kansas" upheaval. The Kansas-Nebraska Act effectively overturned the Missouri Compromise, and the two states would both agree to outlaw slavery.